Hotel lobby grab and go: market, pantry or machine
A lobby market makes sense over a staffed pantry when the point is food and drinks at any hour without adding a shift. It does not need staff at night. Guests tap a card or phone and go. We do not run a staffed pantry.
Three things hotels mix up
A staffed pantry is your labor. Someone opens it, someone closes it, someone covers a break. A locked smart cooler is Digital or Classic: a door, a payment, a close. A micro market is Open Market: kiosk, cooler and wall, for a lobby large enough to hold it. Sizes are in the format comparison.
Digital is the one described for hotel lobbies, with a screen for announcements. Classic is useful when the lobby has a broad niche and a lower ceiling. Open Market belongs in a large lobby, not in the three feet beside the bell cart.
What happens at 1 in the morning
The front desk is doing front desk work. The machine does not need them. No cash drawer to count, and nothing for the desk to restock. Remote inventory tells us what is low before the shelf looks abandoned. Fresh food is available on request.
Restocks can be after hours so a uniformed restock is not crossing a wedding lobby at noon, unless noon is when you want us. Service and restocking are within 1 to 2 days in Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire. Each hotel is still its own visit.
What it costs a hotel
No upfront cost. The hotel provides the space and the power. It plugs into standard wall outlets. Classic uses two. No electrical work is needed. The machines run on built-in cellular. No Wi-Fi is needed. We set terms with you. Profit share depends on traffic and is often about $150 to $800 a month for a busy building. A hotel with a quiet side entrance and a loud porte-cochere are not the same traffic, even under one flag.
We will tell you if the lobby is not a fit. Steady daily traffic is the bar, and we don't publish a room count. A quiet hotel may be a no. A busy lobby may be a yes. The rendering shows the machine in your lobby, free, before you decide. We stock what sells and set the mix with you. Guests pay with a card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or the 365Pay app. Your front desk does not order the product or count the shelves.
What to decide on the call
Where guests already pause. Whether you want a screen for house notes, which points to Digital. Whether you have a real run of wall for Open Market. Whether several hotels should sit on one agreement. Reports are available on request. We carry liability insurance. A certificate is available on request.